... authors are assembled to review the work of
a colleague. Just as the symmetry and geometry of
an office space of set of buildings can thwart or
support "what happens there," so can the simple
organization of room furniture. How should a
WritersWorkshop room be laid out?
* * *
A WritersWorkshop is a community of trust and
support, and the room structure should reflect that.
Most meeting rooms are set up with tables and chairs.
The tables help people take notes, provide a place
for beverages, and support those who sag as the
meeting drags on.
However, tables also provide a shield to hide behind.
While the presenter may feel vulnerable at the front
of the room, the rest of the attendees feel shielded
behind the sturdy ramparts of the meeting room tables,
which are rarely flimsy card-table affairs,
but formidable hardwood structures.
It is convenient to hide behind them.
Yet, in a WritersWorkshop, we want to make the
author feel comfortable, as if the reviewers
are not attacking from behind defenced bullwarks.
Therefore:
Seat the reviewers in a circle. Both the author and
moderator form part of the circle; the structure is
fully egalitarian. Don't use tables: all participants
should present an equally vulnerable (or
supportive) face to the circle as a whole.
Beverages can go on the floor. Except for the author,
who may wish to bring a clipboard to take notes, few of
the participants should be writing during the review.
* * *
The author may stand in place for
AuthorReadsTheWork
or, if the author is so inclined, may move to the
center of the circle.
During the review proper, when the author is a
FlyOnTheWall, it is sometimes customary for the
author to move outside the circle.
Because authors form the community of trust, they
might form their own
AuthorsCircle inside the circle
of observers, in fishbowl style.
NEXT: AuthorsCircle
--
JimCoplien 1996/8/26
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WritersWorkshopPatterns |
AuthorsCircle ]